Venice AI (Venice highlight)

Venice is our highlight Venice setup for privacy-first inference with optional anonymized access to proprietary models. Venice AI provides privacy-focused AI inference with support for uncensored models and access to major proprietary models through their anonymized proxy. All inference is private by default—no training on your data, no logging.

Why Venice in OpenClaw

Private inference for open-source models (no logging).
Uncensored models when you need them.
Anonymized access to proprietary models (Opus/GPT/Gemini) when quality matters.
OpenAI-compatible /v1 endpoints.

Privacy Modes

Venice offers two privacy levels — understanding this is key to choosing your model:

Mode	Description	Models
Private	Fully private. Prompts/responses are never stored or logged. Ephemeral.	Llama, Qwen, DeepSeek, Kimi, MiniMax, Venice Uncensored, etc.
Anonymized	Proxied through Venice with metadata stripped. The underlying provider (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, xAI) sees anonymized requests.	Claude, GPT, Gemini, Grok

Features

Privacy-focused: Choose between “private” (fully private) and “anonymized” (proxied) modes
Uncensored models: Access to models without content restrictions
Major model access: Use Claude, GPT, Gemini, and Grok via Venice’s anonymized proxy
OpenAI-compatible API: Standard /v1 endpoints for easy integration
Streaming: ✅ Supported on all models
Function calling: ✅ Supported on select models (check model capabilities)
Vision: ✅ Supported on models with vision capability
No hard rate limits: Fair-use throttling may apply for extreme usage

Setup

1. Get API Key

Sign up at venice.ai
Go to Settings → API Keys → Create new key
Copy your API key (format: vapi_xxxxxxxxxxxx)

2. Configure OpenClaw

Option A: Environment Variable

export VENICE_API_KEY="vapi_xxxxxxxxxxxx"

Option B: Interactive Setup (Recommended)

openclaw onboard --auth-choice venice-api-key

This will:

Prompt for your API key (or use existing VENICE_API_KEY)
Show all available Venice models
Let you pick your default model
Configure the provider automatically

Option C: Non-interactive

openclaw onboard --non-interactive \
  --auth-choice venice-api-key \
  --venice-api-key "vapi_xxxxxxxxxxxx"

3. Verify Setup

openclaw agent --model venice/kimi-k2-5 --message "Hello, are you working?"

Model Selection

After setup, OpenClaw shows all available Venice models. Pick based on your needs:

Default model: venice/kimi-k2-5 for strong private reasoning plus vision.
High-capability option: venice/claude-opus-4-6 for the strongest anonymized Venice path.
Privacy: Choose “private” models for fully private inference.
Capability: Choose “anonymized” models to access Claude, GPT, Gemini via Venice’s proxy.

Change your default model anytime:

openclaw models set venice/kimi-k2-5
openclaw models set venice/claude-opus-4-6

List all available models:

openclaw models list | grep venice

Configure via `openclaw configure`

Run openclaw configure
Select Model/auth
Choose Venice AI

Which Model Should I Use?

Use Case	Recommended Model	Why
General chat (default)	`kimi-k2-5`	Strong private reasoning plus vision
Best overall quality	`claude-opus-4-6`	Strongest anonymized Venice option
Privacy + coding	`qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct`	Private coding model with large context
Private vision	`kimi-k2-5`	Vision support without leaving private mode
Fast + cheap	`qwen3-4b`	Lightweight reasoning model
Complex private tasks	`deepseek-v3.2`	Strong reasoning, but no Venice tool support
Uncensored	`venice-uncensored`	No content restrictions

Available Models (41 Total)

Private Models (26) — Fully Private, No Logging

Model ID	Name	Context	Features
`kimi-k2-5`	Kimi K2.5	256k	Default, reasoning, vision
`kimi-k2-thinking`	Kimi K2 Thinking	256k	Reasoning
`llama-3.3-70b`	Llama 3.3 70B	128k	General
`llama-3.2-3b`	Llama 3.2 3B	128k	General
`hermes-3-llama-3.1-405b`	Hermes 3 Llama 3.1 405B	128k	General, tools disabled
`qwen3-235b-a22b-thinking-2507`	Qwen3 235B Thinking	128k	Reasoning
`qwen3-235b-a22b-instruct-2507`	Qwen3 235B Instruct	128k	General
`qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct`	Qwen3 Coder 480B	256k	Coding
`qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct-turbo`	Qwen3 Coder 480B Turbo	256k	Coding
`qwen3-5-35b-a3b`	Qwen3.5 35B A3B	256k	Reasoning, vision
`qwen3-next-80b`	Qwen3 Next 80B	256k	General
`qwen3-vl-235b-a22b`	Qwen3 VL 235B (Vision)	256k	Vision
`qwen3-4b`	Venice Small (Qwen3 4B)	32k	Fast, reasoning
`deepseek-v3.2`	DeepSeek V3.2	160k	Reasoning, tools disabled
`venice-uncensored`	Venice Uncensored (Dolphin-Mistral)	32k	Uncensored, tools disabled
`mistral-31-24b`	Venice Medium (Mistral)	128k	Vision
`google-gemma-3-27b-it`	Google Gemma 3 27B Instruct	198k	Vision
`openai-gpt-oss-120b`	OpenAI GPT OSS 120B	128k	General
`nvidia-nemotron-3-nano-30b-a3b`	NVIDIA Nemotron 3 Nano 30B	128k	General
`olafangensan-glm-4.7-flash-heretic`	GLM 4.7 Flash Heretic	128k	Reasoning
`zai-org-glm-4.6`	GLM 4.6	198k	General
`zai-org-glm-4.7`	GLM 4.7	198k	Reasoning
`zai-org-glm-4.7-flash`	GLM 4.7 Flash	128k	Reasoning
`zai-org-glm-5`	GLM 5	198k	Reasoning
`minimax-m21`	MiniMax M2.1	198k	Reasoning
`minimax-m25`	MiniMax M2.5	198k	Reasoning

Anonymized Models (15) — Via Venice Proxy

Model ID	Name	Context	Features
`claude-opus-4-6`	Claude Opus 4.6 (via Venice)	1M	Reasoning, vision
`claude-opus-4-5`	Claude Opus 4.5 (via Venice)	198k	Reasoning, vision
`claude-sonnet-4-6`	Claude Sonnet 4.6 (via Venice)	1M	Reasoning, vision
`claude-sonnet-4-5`	Claude Sonnet 4.5 (via Venice)	198k	Reasoning, vision
`openai-gpt-54`	GPT-5.4 (via Venice)	1M	Reasoning, vision
`openai-gpt-53-codex`	GPT-5.3 Codex (via Venice)	400k	Reasoning, vision, coding
`openai-gpt-52`	GPT-5.2 (via Venice)	256k	Reasoning
`openai-gpt-52-codex`	GPT-5.2 Codex (via Venice)	256k	Reasoning, vision, coding
`openai-gpt-4o-2024-11-20`	GPT-4o (via Venice)	128k	Vision
`openai-gpt-4o-mini-2024-07-18`	GPT-4o Mini (via Venice)	128k	Vision
`gemini-3-1-pro-preview`	Gemini 3.1 Pro (via Venice)	1M	Reasoning, vision
`gemini-3-pro-preview`	Gemini 3 Pro (via Venice)	198k	Reasoning, vision
`gemini-3-flash-preview`	Gemini 3 Flash (via Venice)	256k	Reasoning, vision
`grok-41-fast`	Grok 4.1 Fast (via Venice)	1M	Reasoning, vision
`grok-code-fast-1`	Grok Code Fast 1 (via Venice)	256k	Reasoning, coding

Model Discovery

OpenClaw automatically discovers models from the Venice API when VENICE_API_KEY is set. If the API is unreachable, it falls back to a static catalog. The /models endpoint is public (no auth needed for listing), but inference requires a valid API key.

Streaming & Tool Support

Feature	Support
Streaming	✅ All models
Function calling	✅ Most models (check `supportsFunctionCalling` in API)
Vision/Images	✅ Models marked with “Vision” feature
JSON mode	✅ Supported via `response_format`

Pricing

Venice uses a credit-based system. Check venice.ai/pricing for current rates:

Private models: Generally lower cost
Anonymized models: Similar to direct API pricing + small Venice fee

Comparison: Venice vs Direct API

Aspect	Venice (Anonymized)	Direct API
Privacy	Metadata stripped, anonymized	Your account linked
Latency	+10-50ms (proxy)	Direct
Features	Most features supported	Full features
Billing	Venice credits	Provider billing

Usage Examples

# Use the default private model
openclaw agent --model venice/kimi-k2-5 --message "Quick health check"

# Use Claude Opus via Venice (anonymized)
openclaw agent --model venice/claude-opus-4-6 --message "Summarize this task"

# Use uncensored model
openclaw agent --model venice/venice-uncensored --message "Draft options"

# Use vision model with image
openclaw agent --model venice/qwen3-vl-235b-a22b --message "Review attached image"

# Use coding model
openclaw agent --model venice/qwen3-coder-480b-a35b-instruct --message "Refactor this function"

Troubleshooting

API key not recognized

echo $VENICE_API_KEY
openclaw models list | grep venice

Ensure the key starts with vapi_.

Model not available

The Venice model catalog updates dynamically. Run openclaw models list to see currently available models. Some models may be temporarily offline.

Connection issues

Venice API is at https://api.venice.ai/api/v1. Ensure your network allows HTTPS connections.

Config file example

{
  env: { VENICE_API_KEY: "vapi_..." },
  agents: { defaults: { model: { primary: "venice/kimi-k2-5" } } },
  models: {
    mode: "merge",
    providers: {
      venice: {
        baseUrl: "https://api.venice.ai/api/v1",
        apiKey: "${VENICE_API_KEY}",
        api: "openai-completions",
        models: [
          {
            id: "kimi-k2-5",
            name: "Kimi K2.5",
            reasoning: true,
            input: ["text", "image"],
            cost: { input: 0, output: 0, cacheRead: 0, cacheWrite: 0 },
            contextWindow: 256000,
            maxTokens: 65536,
          },
        ],
      },
    },
  },
}

Overview

Model concepts

Configuration

Providers

Venice AI

Venice AI (Venice highlight)

Why Venice in OpenClaw

Privacy Modes

Features

Setup

1. Get API Key

2. Configure OpenClaw

3. Verify Setup

Model Selection

Configure via `openclaw configure`

Which Model Should I Use?

Available Models (41 Total)

Private Models (26) — Fully Private, No Logging

Anonymized Models (15) — Via Venice Proxy

Model Discovery

Streaming & Tool Support

Pricing

Comparison: Venice vs Direct API

Usage Examples

Troubleshooting

API key not recognized

Model not available

Connection issues

Config file example

Links

​Venice AI (Venice highlight)

​Why Venice in OpenClaw

​Privacy Modes

​Features

​Setup

​1. Get API Key

​2. Configure OpenClaw

​3. Verify Setup

​Model Selection

​Configure via openclaw configure

​Which Model Should I Use?

​Available Models (41 Total)

​Private Models (26) — Fully Private, No Logging

​Anonymized Models (15) — Via Venice Proxy

​Model Discovery

​Streaming & Tool Support

​Pricing

​Comparison: Venice vs Direct API

​Usage Examples

​Troubleshooting

​API key not recognized

​Model not available

​Connection issues

​Config file example

​Links

Venice AI (Venice highlight)

Why Venice in OpenClaw

Privacy Modes

Features

Setup

1. Get API Key

2. Configure OpenClaw

3. Verify Setup

Model Selection

Configure via `openclaw configure`

Which Model Should I Use?

Available Models (41 Total)

Private Models (26) — Fully Private, No Logging

Anonymized Models (15) — Via Venice Proxy

Model Discovery

Streaming & Tool Support

Pricing

Comparison: Venice vs Direct API

Usage Examples

Troubleshooting

API key not recognized

Model not available

Connection issues

Config file example

Links